New-York tribune., 1887-04-29
THE DRAMA-MUSIC.
MADISON sOUARE-"ELANE."

rd annrec:atve with most excellent accessories OF
stage picture and costume. and under most auspcious
conditions the play of Elaine which has been maze
| bv Mr. G. p Lathrop and Mr.. Henry Edwards was
Yesterday afternoon in the Madison Square
Theatre This was an interesting occasion, ana IL was
40 viewed by the audience There are two salient isct
J to be recorded with reference TO IT, Inc play o,
Elane" Is a bad play. and 1t was exceedingly "ei
received. Mr. Tennysons poem Is not under riaGuS s
sion and may be set aside. Mr. Lathrop ana MI. Eu
wards have taken this poem as the basis TOT pay
and it upon their structure that
They have TUNED the poem into hye-act Tragedy
/ Their text is mainly composed OF Mr.. IenDysohs own
words They have introduced two persons and nave
endeavored to Tighten the melancholy character Oh tne
story with CLEAN of that timehonored bumor which
ia supposed to ensue from the amatory encounter OF
the bluf gallant and the coy ohambeimaid. They
have also brought back the portculis the donon and
Mrs Batemans harper. The story OF Elaine, as IL
exists in the poem Is told with only too much hdehty
ia their synopsis of It. For this Is the aggregate Oh
the piece 1t is pictorial synopsis of Mr. Tennysons
| noem The essence of il is misery-the misery Oh
eutv love which is accomr lshed, and the misery OF
an innocent love which is defeated and, since misery
ia in nature always passive and never active the oo
position which represents 1T must necessarily DC
always picture and never action Ihls Is inc case Win
| Elaine"
Presented TO persons who had never read Tennysons
noen this piece would be almost unintelligble Ihe
liberal use of TennysOns words does not serve IN
adramatc way to make it any the more persplcuous.
Tennysons plank in this poem is mbSnlhcohe aS
description and it is magnificent in several other ways
but II is not direct and adequate as dramatic express
SION When for example, one OF the characters "isnes
to say that has LETT his chamber she states that
he has q left the stony shadows OF bis loom" Ihere
ia much of this kind OF talk, all through the compost
ton @King Arthur" speaking to his wife, is made to
tell long story about skeleton and diamond
crown. Lancelot," alone upon the scene, Is naue
to speak in SMILES about the four seasons as denoteu
in the state his heart In the.orignal poem these
H. ho1 6QEin N
write dramatic verse he probably would ebave written
I'm different manner. At any rate, his narrative and
iewellee is not dramatic and that Is the sod
and controlling fact Of the situation. inete is ono
and only one dramatic moment In this piece-S
moment in the third act when "Lanceiot ana
Elainer have their explanation ana tneir iaie"eh
This passage ends with Lancelots exit az oetter
for me hundred thousand deaths anu neIe Ipo
curain ought TO fall The rest of that act Is pachy
and it makes The bunder OF anti-climax. Indeed,
the rest OF the play comes dangerously near 20
ity OF tho death there is need, ana certainly
there is no need OF the funeral pageant asshoWn at the
moment when the death-barge leaves the Castle OF
A-tolat. To show it once at Camelot "hlcn Is tne
essential elimination, is to show 1t enough. II more
than this is to be done we might as well have pan
Drama . ,A.
of the audience was Elanes' avOwal OF her love TO
A" Lanoeot and hs reception OF 1t; Here, LOT onVe
tho interest became human and actual. ~ ne. OF og
came so anywhere else The light passages Whlcn
have been written into Mr. Tennysons verse seemed
not only inappropriate but trivial The general snec'
ton of charade when got up by clever young people
IA the incidental feature OF social FESTIVAL Inc stage
setting, indeed. vas costly handsome and IN tue iso
act pctoriay beautiful. Here the painting 0I .he
roadway and the distant tower IL lem. ne OK
erons of the actors we're noble and in the man wore
worthy of all praise When it comes to spangies ana
plato urmor there s in the contemporary theatrical
temperament, strong and natural dispoSton 70 guy
the whole business The evening dress actors OF our
time when thus suddenly required to represent an
cient Saxons naturally cut but sorry ngure IN tnat
unusual field of personal display. Mr. pitt as nIng
Iov lranu
very queer object yet he acted graVey ana Win al
the majesty that is fcomp able with sPahgleu Nsts
Uis delivery of @Arthur's" diamond speech was
surerb piece of elocution; and very fine pieces OF
elocution we're Afforded by Mr. Salynl, IN me- descfP
tion OF King Arthur and by Mr. Walden Ramsey IN
his description of the Tournament: MISS marie
Burroughs was not In the least like Guinevere ana
evidently has net the slightest comprehension OF t
character. Indeed, when one considers tne actI tha
corrosive misery of Lancelot' and Guineyere IN
their irresistible passion and their remorse the spec
tacle presented by Mr. Savini and MISS % M n
their puny copy of that rapture ana agony II kg .ne
MAY of childien Mr.. Salyin Is one OF the aoiest,
most sincere and most finely equipped young men On
the stage but his limitations are those OF youth anu
nexperience IL might be beneficial for him to account
10 himself for the and figure, considered rs those
of a loving and suffering man. that he presented upon
this occasion. The zeal of Mr.. Massen and Mr.. Ram
sey never succeeded in persuadng apyoooy that
hcv we're in earnest; but 1t was excellent zeal, all
the same and they ought to be strongly commended
for IT, l. MI, ,uto
The Shit OF the occasion was made by Miss Annie
RussC 4 Elaine Her conception ol tno
is indeed deficient in wholesome vitality. woman
capable of dying for love is great woman, ana not
such one as feeds sate-pencils and chalk Ihere
il no nobler passion in the world than that PASSION
and Il ia not experienced By persons OF dyspePtcc
stitntion and limp temperament. Let US nave an
end OF the deusons II that to be spiritual ana
fine is to be skin and bones and TO ~hmper ana oeat
Miss Russes mpersonation although reminiscent Ul
Agnes Ethel and OF Ellen Terry, and although IL |
pushed ohildishnoss almost to tho verge OF nsplult
was ndicativ, of remarkable and valuable power
the power OF rcpose in the utterance OF emoion AN
actress capabe OF doing this would be capable OF DO
mi much finer things Miss Russells exit just before
Elaine comes for the death scene was beauti-
ful stroke of art-and IL remained unsurpassed
The play OF Elaine" is not ikoly ever to be, done
again. II ever II should be done again. the fourth
tabeau that OF the death barge ought to be omitted
Such pictures unnecessary to those VINO DO not |
understand them, and they most affecting TO those
who do, and unless necessary part OF TINS play
is TO be explained and carried on by them, they are
superluous and cruel. Mr. LathrOp ana Mr.. Edwards /
have made as good play could be made out OF the
story of Elaine" bat 1t misses fire. 1t only serves to
show that the poem OF " Elaine " is good poem |
which was known already. As a play 1t IL slow,
stationary st0d, lugubrous. IL owed almost every
thing Yesterday to the in which 1t was set and
acted and IL owed the rest TO the sympathy OF |
select audience, composed mostly OF personal friends
to the authors who, rightly and heartily esteem them
as two OF the best fellows In the world